Flood barrier

ABSTRACT

A flood barrier intended for use in conjunction with the doorways of homes. The barrier comprises a U-shaped channel structure, the legs of which are secured either to the walls of the home immediately adjacent to a door frame or to inner faces of the door opening, with the back of the U extending across the door sill. The bottoms and at least one side wall of the channels are lined with sealing strips. A panel of waterproof material has dimensions corresponding to those of the channel structure and is adapted to be fitted in the channel during flood conditions. When its use is not required, the panel is stored in an out of the way protective position, such as by being secured to the inner face of the door in the doorway which is to be protected.

United States Patent 1 Maskell Jan. 21, 1975 FLOOD BARRIER [76]Inventor: Stanley J. Maskell, 30 W. Coolidge Ave., Phoenix, Ariz. 8501322 Filed: Sept. 20, 1973 21 Appl. No.: 399,000

[52] US. Cl 49/70, 49/63, 49/463, 61/28 [51] Int. Cl E06b 7/00 [58]Field of Search 49/70, 61-63, 49/463466, 148, 501, 504, 505; 61/28, 29,22 A [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 780,285 l/l905 Hammond49/148 X 1,536,525 5/1925 Plath 49/466 X 1,699,079 1/1929 Ruchie 49/61 X2,602,198 7/1952 Parker 49/463 2,635,304 4/1953 Peters 49/70 X 2,837,7846/1958 Jannette 49/463 X 2,988,786 6/1961 Roos 49/61 3,257,758 6/1966Johnson 49/463 Primary Examiner-Philip C. Kannan Attorney, Agent, orFirm-John A. Robertson [57] ABSTRACT A flood barrier intended for use inconjunction with the doorways of homes. The barrier comprises a U-shaped channel structure, the legs of which are secured either to thewalls of the home immediately adjacent to a door frame or to inner facesof the door opening, with the back of the U extending across the doorsill. The bottoms and at least one side wall of the channels are linedwith sealing strips. A panel of waterproof material has dimensionscorresponding to those of the channel structure and is adapted to befitted in the channel during flood conditions. When its use is notrequired, the panel is stored in an out of the way protective position,such as by being secured to the inner face of the door in the doorwaywhich is to be protected.

9 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTED m 21 ms SHEHIIF 2 FIE-5 5 VailFLOOD BARRIER The present invention relates to a flood barrier which isintended for use in areas where flood conditions do not create anexcessive depth in the flood waters, and is concerned primarily with aflood barrier which is stored in a protected out of the way positionwhen its use is not required, but which may be readily inserted into aneffective position on the outside of a door frame when flood conditionsarise.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There are many inhabited areas which mightbe classified as generally flat, and when flood conditions arise in suchareas, the flood waters are not of excessive depth. Thus, by way ofexample, it is noted that in June of 1972 Phoenix, Arizona was subjectedto a flood in which the waters rose to a height of about 12 inches. Mostof the homes in such flat areas are erected so that the doorways arefairly close to the ground surface, and under such a condition the floodwaters will pass through the doorways, even though the doors are closed,and cause serious damage.

The present invention is founded on the basic concept of providing aflood barrier which is associated with each doorway of a home and whichis readily available to be placed in effective position when a floodcondition arises.

To provide the desired protective effects, the flood barrier must besusceptible of being placed in watertight relation with respect to thedoor frame or wall structure contiguous thereto and the sill of thedoorway. Moreover, provision must be made for storing the panel which isthe main element of the barrier in an out of the way protected positionwhen its use is not required, and yet be readily available when its useis required.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION With the foregoing conditions in mind, thepresent invention has in view the following objectives:

1. To provide a flood barrier comprising a U-shaped channel structureincluding side legs and a bottom back, together with means for securingthe channel structure to a door opening, and a waterproof panel which isremovably positioned in the U-shaped channel structure.

2. To provide, in a flood barrier of the type noted, a U-shaped channelstructure including side legs, having means for securing them to thefront face of a wall in which a door frame is mounted and immediatelyadjacent to the door frame.

3. To provide, in a floor barrier of the character aforesaid, a U-shapedchannel structure which is adapted to be fitted inside the opening of awall which receives a door frame.

4. To provide, in a floor barrier of the kind described, a U-shapedchannel structure, the bottom walls of which are lined by sealingstrips, together with sealing strips lining at least one side wall ofeach channel.

5. To provide, in a flood barrier of the type noted, a filler strip thatnormally fills the bottom back channel so as to obviate the possibilityof dirt and foreign matter collecting therein.

6. To provide a door with which the flood barrier of this invention isassociated, with means for removably positioning the panel of thebarrier on the inner face of the door.

Various other more detailed objects and advantages of the invention,such as arise in connection with carrying out the above ideas in apractical embodiment will, in part, become apparent and, in part, behereafter stated as the description of the invention proceeds.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The foregoing objects are achieved by providinga flood barrier for the lower portion of a doorway, including a doorframe that is mounted in an opening in the wall of a home, and a sillextending across the bottom of said opening, with the door adapted toassume either open or closed positions.

The flood barrier comprises a U-shaped channel structure having sidelegs and a bottom back. The channels of the side legs open inwardly andthe channels of the bottom back open upwardly. In one embodiment, theside legs carry outwardly extending tabs which constitute means forsecuring them to the outer face of the wall inwhich the door framereceiving opening is formed. In a second embodiment, the side legs havebottom walls formed with openings which receive screws which secure themto the inner confronting surfaces of the wall which define the dooropening.

The bottom wall of each element of the channel structure is providedwith a sealing strip, while at least one side wall of the channels isalso provided with a sealing strip.

A waterproof panel is dimensioned to be snugly received within theU-shaped channel structure by being slid thereinto with a downwardmovement. Means is provided on the inner face of the door which ismounted on the door frame for removably supporting a panel thereon in aprotected out of the way position when its use is not required. Duringperiods of non-use of the panel, a filler strip fills the channel of thebottom back of the U-shaped structure to prevent the collection of dirtor foreign matter therein.

For a full and more complete understanding of the invention, referencemay be had to the following description and the accompanying drawingswherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective looking from the outside at a portion of a homehaving a doorway, with the flood barrier of this invention associatedtherewith and in effective position;

FIG. 2 is a perspective looking at the inside of the door depicted inFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective of a modified embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a horizontal section through the structure of FIG. 1 beingtaken on the plane of the line 44 of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a horizontal section through the structure of FIG. 3 beingtaken on the plane of the line 5-5 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a detail perspective on an enlarged scale illustrating onetype of seal which may be employed in conjunction with the channelstructure;

FIG. 7 is a detail section taken on the plane of the line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a detail section similar to FIG. 7, depicting the sealingdevice of FIGS. 6 and 7 as applied to the embodiment of FIG. 3, and

FIG. 9 is a detail perspective on an enlarged scale illustrating anothersealing arrangement and the filler strip.

Before entering into a detailed description of the embodimentsillustrated in the drawings, it is noted that the present invention isdescribed as being associated with a doorway in which a door is hingedlymounted. However, it is to be clearly understood that the flood barrierof this invention is also susceptible of being operatively associatedwith sliding doors, such as those of the patio type commonly known asarcadia doors. The only substantial difference between the twoapplications resides in the manner in which the panel of the barrier isstored in an out of the way protective positron.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawings,wherein like reference characters denote corresponding elementsthroughout the several views, and first more particularly to FIGS. 1 and4, a portion of the wall of a home is designated 10 and presents anouter face 11. Wall 10 is formed with a doorway defined by innerconfronting side faces 12, a bottom sill l3, and a top surface 14.Mounted in this doorway is a door frame including side struts l andbetween which is hingedly mounted a door 16 presenting an outer face 17and an inner face 18.

A U-shaped channel structure is referred to generally at 19. Itcomprises a bottom back 20 which overlies sill 13 and upstanding sidelegs 21. The channel of back 20 opens upwardly, while the channels ofside legs 21 open inwardly. As shown more clearly in FIG. 9, eachchannel element 20 and 21 comprises a bottom wall 22, an inner side wall23 and an outer side wall 24. Channel structure 19 is of any appropriatemetal, with aluminum being indicated as the preferred material.

As shown in FIG. 1, each side leg 21 carries a plurality of tabs 25which project outwardly therefrom. One of these tabs is shown moreclearly in FIGS. 6 and 7, which illustrate that each tab 25 lies in theplane of inner channel wall 23 and thus constitutes an extensionthereof. Each tab 25 is formed with a counter-sunk opening 26 throughwhich passes a headed screw 27 which is used in anchoring the U-shapedchannel structure 19 in position, with walls 23 of side legs 21 engagingouter face 11 of wall 10.

At this point it is deemed advisable to describe an alternatepositioning of the U-shaped channel structure by reference to FIGS. 3, 5and 8. In this embodiment of the invention, a U-shaped channel structure19 which is substantially the same as that illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 4is employed, with the notable exception that the bottom back 20 issomewhat shorter in the embodiment of FIGS. 3, 5 and 8 as compared tothe embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 4, and the tabs 25 are omitted. Uponreferring to FIG. 8, it will be noted that bottom wall 22 of each sideleg 21 is formed with a countersunk opening 28. With the U-shapedstructure positioned in the doorway opening, bottom walls 22 of sidelegs 21 engage the inner surfaces 12 of the door opening and headedscrews 29 pass through openings 28 and are embedded in the wall tosecure the U-shaped structure 19 in the position illustrated. In thisposition, it will be noted that outer walls 24 of channel elements areflush with the outer surface 11 of wall 10.

In each of the embodiments the bottom wall 22 of each channel elementand 2] is lined by a sealing strip 30 which may be of any materialcommonly used in the production of sealing strips, with foam rubber orplastic indicated as the preferred material. In each of the embodiments,another sealing strip 31 lines the inner surface of inner wall 23.

A panel is designated 32 and may be of any appropriate rigid waterproofmaterial, such as wood, metal or plastic. It should be sufficientlyrigid to withstand the water pressure of a flood condition. Panel 32will have a length substantially equal to the distance between thebottom walls 22 of side legs 21, less the thickness of the sealingstrips 30. It will have a height substantially equal to the height ofside legs 21, which will range from 12 inches to 30 inches depending onthe particular locality in which the flood barrier is intended to beinstalled.

In one embodiment of the invention, the inner surface of outer wall 24of each channel element is lined by a sealing strip 33. In thisembodiment, the panel 32 is slid downwardly between the sealing strips31 and 33 with a tight fit, which results in a compression of thesealing strips to achieve a watertight seal. As the panel is forced homeinto its ultimate position, the lower edge thereof engages sealing strip30 in bottom back 20 to complete the sealing effects.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, the sealing strip 33which lines the front wall 24 is omitted.

' Front wall 24 is formed with a plurality of threaded openings 34 whichreceive headed screws 35. The inner ends of these screws 35 carry pads36 which engage panel 32 to clamp the latter against the sealing strips31 which line the inner walls, thereby achieving a watertight seal. Afiller strip 38 of an appropriate material, such as foam rubber orplastic, fills the channel of bottom back 20 during periods of non-useto inhibit the collection of dirt and foreign matter in this channel.

Referring now to FIG. 2, it will be noted that the inner face 18 of door16 is provided with three brackets 37 which removably receive andposition panel 32 during periods of non-use. In this connection, it isimportant to note that certain factors and conditions must be satisfiedin storing panel 32 during periods of non-use. In the first place, thepanel must be conveniently available to the doorway when floodconditions arise. It would be highly undesirable to store it at a remoteplace, whereby difficulty might be encountered in retrieving it for use.Secondly, the panel must be stored in a place where it is protected fromthe weather, including moisture conditions or sunlight which might warpthe panel and render it unfit for use when required. And, flnally, itshould not be stored in a place where there is a likelihood that itwould be struck by a person or object with resulting damage.

FIG. 2 illustrates a convenient manner in which to store the panel inassociation with the hingedly mounted door. When so assembled, it isdeemed desirable and practical that the exposed face of the panel carrya decorative design or pattern which would add to the appearance of thehome at this location. When the flood barrier is associated with anarcadia door, the panel could be clamped against the eaves immediatelyadjacent to the patio door to satisfy the above conditions.

Operation While the manner in which the subject flood barrier isinstalled and used is believed to be obvious from the illustration ofthe drawings and description of parts set forth above it may be brieflydescribed as follows:

The U-shaped channel structure 19 is permanently installed in theposition of either FIGS. 1 and 4 on one hand, or FIGS. 3 and 5 on theother. The panel 32 is removably positioned on the inner face 18 of door16 or clamped to the eaves above a patio door. When a flood conditionarises, the panel 32 is removed from its stored position, filler strip38 removed and the panel is inserted into the U-shaped channel structure19 by presenting its lower edge to the upper open edges of the channelsof side legs 21 and forcing the panel downwardly until its lower endengages the sealing strip 30 on the bottom of back 20. If the sealingarrangement depicted in FIG. 9 is included in the channel structure,this downward movement is all that is required to establish thewatertight seal. However, if the seal arrangement of FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 isemployed, upon the completion of such downward movement, screws 35 aretightened to clamp each portion of the panel against the sealing strips31 which line the inner walls 23.

While preferred specific embodiments are herein disclosed, it is to beclearly understood that the invention is not to be limited to the exactconstructions, materials and devices illustrated and described becausevarious modifications of these details may be provided in putting theinvention into practice.

What is claimed is:

1. For use with the doorway formed in the wall of a home, said wallhaving an outer surface and inner surfaces defining the doorway,together with a door having inner and outer surfaces and movable intoopen or closed positions relative to said doorway, a flood barriercomprising:

a. a U-shaped channel structure including side legs and a bottom back,the channels of said side legs opening inwardly and the channel of saidback opening upwardly;

b. means for permanently mounting said U-shaped channel structure at thelower portion of said doorway;

c. a waterproof panel dimensioned to be snugly received in said U-shapedchannel structure;

d. sealing means for creating a watertight seal between edge portions ofsaid panel and said U- shaped channel structure;

e. a filler strip filling the back of said channel structure duringperiods of non-use, and

f. means for storing said panel in an out of the way protected position,conveniently available to said doorway during periods of non-use.

2. The flood barrier of claim I in which the U-shaped channel structureis of metal and the means for permanently mounting the channel structureat said doorway takes the form of tabs formed integrally with andextending from the side legs of said channel structure, each of saidtabs having an opening therein, together with screws passing throughsaid openings to clamp the Ushaped channel structure against the outerface of said wall.

3. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which each of the side legs of theU-shaped channel structure includes a bottom wall, and the means formounting the U-shaped channel structure at the bottom of said doorwaytakes the form of openings formed in said bottom walls, together withscrews which pass through said openings and are embedded in the homewall to clamp said side legs against the inner faces defining thedoorway.

4. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which each of the side legs andbottom back includes a bottom wall, an inner side wall and an outer sidewall, and the sealing means comprises a sealing strip lining each ofsaid bottom walls and sealing strips lining said inner and outer sidewalls.

5. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which each of said side legs andbottom back includes a bottom wall, an inner side wall, an outer sidewall, a sealing strip lining each of said bottom walls, and a sealingstrip lining each of said inner side walls, together with screwsthreadedly mounted in openings in the outer side walls of said side legsto clamp the panel against the sealing strips lining the inner sidewalls.

6. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which the panel is removably mountedon the inner face of the door by brackets.

7. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which the U-shaped channel structureis of aluminum.

8. The flood barrier of claim 4 in which the sealing strips are of afoam material.

9. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which the filler strip

1. For use with the doorway formed in the wall of a home, said wallhaving an outer surface and inner surfaces defining the doorway,together with a door having inner and outer surfaces and movable intoopen or closed positions relative to said doorway, a flood barriercomprising: a. a U-shaped channel structure including side legs and abottom back, the channels of said side legs opening inwardly and thechannel of said back opening upwardly; b. means for permanently mountingsaid U-shaped channel structure at the lower portion of said doorway; c.a waterproof panel dimensioned to be snugly received in said U-shapedchannel structure; d. sealing means for creating a watertight sealbetween edge portions of said panel and said U-shaped channel structure;e. a filler strip filling the back of said channel structure duringperiods of non-use, and f. means for storing said panel in an out of theway protected position, conveniently available to said doorway duringperiods of non-use.
 2. The flood barrier of claim 1 in which theU-shaped channel structure is of metal and the means for permanentlymounting the channel structure at said doorway takes the form of tabsformed integrally with and extending from the side legs of said channelstructure, each of said tabs having an opening therein, together withscrews passing through said openings to clamp the U-shaped channelstructure against the outer face of said wall.
 3. The flood barrier ofclaim 1 in which each of the side legs of the U-shaped channel structureincludes a bottom wall, and the means for mounting the U-shaped channelstructure at the bottom of said doorway takes the form of openingsformed in said bottom walls, together with screws which pass throughsaid openings and are embedded in the home wall to clamp said side legsagainst the inner faces defining the doorway.
 4. The flood barrier ofclaim 1 in which each of the side legs and bottom back includes a bottomwall, an inner side wall and an outer side wall, and the sealing meanscomprises a sealing strip lining each of said bottom walls and sealingstrips lining said inner and outer side walls.
 5. The flood barrier ofclaim 1 in which each of said side legs and bottom back includes abottom wall, an inner side wall, an outer side wall, a sealing striplining each of said bottom walls, and a sealing strip lining each ofsaid inner side walls, together with screws threadedly mounted inopenings in the outer side walls of said side legs to clamp the panelagainst the sealing strips lining the inner side walls.
 6. The floodbarrier of claim 1 in which the panel is removably mounted on the innerface of the door by brackets.
 7. The flood barrier of claim 1 in whichthe U-shaped channel structure is of aluminum.
 8. The flood barrier ofclaim 4 in which the sealing strips are of a foam material.
 9. The floodbarrier of claim 1 in which the filler strip is of foam rubber.